Green-NDP government in B.C. could mean $600 tax hike: report

A NDP and Green Party team leading B.C. will cost the average person $594 more in taxes each year, according to a new study released Wednesday.

The Fraser Institute, a right-leaning think tank, says most of that increase would come from fuel and carbon taxes.

“The NDP-Green agreement states that an NDP-Green government would implement an increase in the carbon tax by $5 per tonne per year,” the report reads. “There is no commitment to make the carbon tax increases revenue neutral.”

Families in the $20,000-$50,000 annual income bracket will likely be protected from that tax hike by the proposed climate action rebate, according to the study.

At the top end of the scale, it suggests families earning between $150,000 and $250,000 can expect to pay just over $1,000 more each year in taxes.

The analysis also says the two parties’ commitment to eliminate medical service premiums would only boost taxes in the categories.

The institute says it based its findings on the Greens’ pledge to “roll MSP payments into the payroll tax and personal income tax” and the NDP’s intent to “replace the lost revenue with increases in other taxes.”

Overall, the report found the average family earning $110,376 would see its tax rate go up by half a percentage point, from 42.1 per cent to 42.6 per cent.